Obesity in young people is one of the main problems of modern health care due to its high prevalence, complex adverse health effects, risk of complications and low effectiveness of existing treatments. The urgency of this problem is also increasing in low- and middle-income countries, including Ukraine. The article presents data on the medical and social significance of obesity at a young age, the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children of all ages in the world and in our country, key risk factors for overweight, as well as key WHO strategies and programs for the prevention of food-related diseases. In Ukraine, there is an insufficient level of registration of cases of obesity, which is due to the imperfection of the existing system of prevention of this pathology. Thus, important measures on this issue in our country, according to modern strategy, are the study of the environment where the child is, the lifestyle of families, the health of overweight children, followed by the organization of prevention and treatment.